How I Spend €5 Three Ways in Florence!

As a new comer in Italy, before having a local bank account I always find myself in short of pocket cash. In order to save the energies from going to the ATM everyday, I try to utilize credit card as much as possible, and more importantly make the best use of the Euro in my wallet.

€5 is small money in Florece, you easily spend it for a big size gelato in the city center. However after almost two months living here, I find there are good deals you can get with this piece of small note! Wanna know what are they? Check below! 😜👇

1. A simple breakfast in The Golden View restaurant by the river Arno. For TWO!
The Golden View is a restaurant just by the Arno, and from their window seats you can have Ponte Vecchio, Uffizzi in your sight. I had been twice for lunch and I liked a lot their fresh pasta. And it is easy to imagine that the bill is not cheap, as the location and the view is killing (usually their pasta starts from €15).

However I was surprised that it only costed €4.8 for a couple-breakfast! My husband and I went there for a simple breakfast: 2 pastries, 1 coffee espresso, 1 cappuccino. It was not so crowded, which allowed us to have a proper table to sit down, have some conversation and enjoy some qualified morning time! I was so happy to find this great deal, and definitely plan to visit there more!

For lunch if you want to stay close to Ponte Vecchio area and would like to have a relaxing lunch time avoiding the crowds, this place is a choice! It is not cheap though, but people go there not only for food but also the environment. They do not have the 10% service charge, instead there is a fixed “coperto”, coverage fee, of €3.5 for stay indoor (while if you have a light lunch with self-service in the bar, you don’t need to pay for it). At the end the whole package is worth considering, isn’t it! 😝

2. Unlimited ride of the ataf city bus within 24 hours.

This is a good deal for tourists. Buy a €5 ticket and enjoy a 24-hour unlimited ride by ataf buses!

It is not allowed to drive into the city center of Florence, so for those who plan to visit different places in town, it is convenient to take the city bus and go around. Line C1 C2 C3 and D drive you around the city center, which cover most of the popular places and sights. Besides these headlines, there are also other lines bring you to other check points.

Consider to buy the ticket in the afternoon, and start go around by bus. And keep using the same ticket next morning to visit other places. This way, you divide the ticket validity into two days, rather than buying in the morning and ending up using it only half day.

To purchase ataf bus ticket, I suggest to go a Tabacchi shop (those with a big letter “T” at the door), where the cost is the most convenient. However from time to time the Tabacchi shop may run out of tickets, in this case you can also buy on board, but it costs more and only valid for 90 minutes.

3. A quick escape from the heat to the GUCCI museum
The GUCCI museum locates in Piazza della Signoria, next to the Palazzo Vecchio. Inside you can see most of the classic, as well as vintage collections of GUCCI. I was amazed by their evening gown, and couldn’t move myself from that section for a while. It is common to see those most be-loved celebrities wearing GUCCI in all kinds of gala on TV. However when physically getting so close to the couture and seeing vividly the details, I was just mind-blown!

The ticket costs €7. However if you go on Thursday evening after 8pm, it only cost €5! It could be a good way for digestion after a big dinner! Consider to save the dessert and allocate the budget to something delicious visual wise! And one more thing that can’t help to mention: if you are tired from walking all day in such heat, take an escape to the museum. There is air-con!!!

There is a cafe in the museum, where can be nice place for a short break in the middle of the long hot summer day.